This was certainly something to be pleased about.
After shell-shocking meltdowns in the fourth quarter in two consecutive weeks, not only was Pitt searching for answers from a middling offense; it was yearning for more from a defense which had left more to be desired in an uncharacteristic middling season to follow an ACC championship.
Needing two wins in their final four games to gain bowl eligibility, the Panthers came off of surrendering a combined 38 points in two weeks in each of the final 15 minutes, which resulted in a forgettable month of October.
The Panthers got November started on the right foot by utilizing the strengths of their team, starting with monster performances by captains Deslin Alexandre and SirVocea Dennis, who played major roles in limiting No. 20 Syracuse to 145 total yards and resulting in a 19-9 victory on Saturday at Acrisure Stadium.
"Something we always talk about through our practice the whole week, just continue to finish, continue to fight, continue to persevere, and never let ourselves down," Alexandre said. "We continued, we did that today, and we got a win. I'm so happy for them."
Alexandre was the driving force for a defensive line which desperately needed someone not named Calijah Kancey to step up. All he did was register 2.5 sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss, seven total tackles, and a pass break-up. The cherry on top was his sack on Orange quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson with 1:35 left in the game, to put the Panthers ahead by two scores. In all, Pitt sacked Del Rio-Wilson six times.
"He followed our game plan," Dennis said of his fellow captain. "We knew what we wanted to do, we knew how we wanted to get after it, and Des was put in the right place a lot of times. He made the most of his opportunities, and he had a hell of a game."
As for Dennis, he moves to 4-0 in his career against his hometown Orange. The Syracuse native and product of nearby Christian Brothers Academy had himself a day, notching a team-high eight tackles, forcing a fumble, and registering a sack and a TFL.
The Panthers were masterful at stopping 2021 second-team Associated Press All-American running back Sean Tucker, who was limited to just 19 yards on 10 carries and two catches for three yards out of the backfield. Syracuse played without starting quarterback and rising talent Garrett Shrader, as he was held out with an undisclosed injury. He had missed he second half of last week's game against Notre Dame and was not dressed on Saturday, though speculation throughout the week suggested that he could have been ready to play.
Instead, it was the Florida transfer Del Rio-Wilson, who earned his first career start. Pitt (5-4, 2-3 ACC) stifled the reserve and the Orange offense in every which way.
Syracuse (6-3, 3-2 ACC) mustered 25 rushing yards on 25 carries. It converted just 3 of 14 third downs. It reached the red zone just once. It did not reach 100 yards of total offense until the 6-minute mark of the fourth quarter. It had 92 total yards on 40 plays, followed by 53 yards on eight plays to close the game.
So, yes, Pitt's defense dominated in every which way on Saturday. A refreshing sight after two dismal collapses and allowing superb quarterback play to get the best of them.
"I thought the defense played outstanding," Pat Narduzzi said. "I mean, they were all over the place ... It was a heck of a game. Had some great plays in the game."
Even more impressive about this defensive performance, ironically enough, is holding Syracuse to very little despite not generating a single turnover. Del Rio-Wilson wasn't the sharpest in completing 8 of 23 passes for 120 yards, and the Orange were largely kept in front of the Pitt defense all afternoon. Pitt allowed just two plays of 30 or more yards, and Tucker's longest run went for seven yards.
"I think it's a lot," Alexandre said. "I think it's a stepping stone just to show that no matter what we go through, you're going to continue pushing. We're never going to put our heads down. We're going to keep fighting until the last snap. That's what we talked about the whole week and before the game, and we were able to do that tonight."
MORE FROM THE GAME
• Pitt played without the All-American candidate Israel Abanikanda, after he missed practice all week following an injury sustained late in the game against North Carolina last week. Abanikanda entered this week as the Football Bowl Subdivision leader in touchdowns, points, and all-purpose yards, while checking in as the ACC's leading rusher. He dressed and went through pregame warmups on Saturday.
"I thought Tuesday, taking a day off on Tuesday, he was sore, and I figured Izzy heals really well, really quick," Narduzzi said. "Usually we've got a yellow (noncontact) jersey on him on Tuesday just to take it easy. Wednesday he didn't go and he said he wasn't feeling any better, so I felt like on Wednesday that he wasn't going to go. Then if you don't practice on Thursday, it's hard to put a man out on the field that's not physically ready to go. I'm not going to do that.
"I think he probably could have gone if we wanted to, but he's smiling, and he's happy in the locker room and we got a win without him, and he'll be -- the thing I said to him is you're going to be really healthy for this week. So he's not going to be sore on Tuesday."
• In Abanikanda's absence, it was Rodney Hammond Jr. and C'Bo Flemister who picked up the lion's share of the ground work. Hammond rushed 28 times for 124 yards and a touchdown, while Flemister had his best game since transferring from Notre Dame by carrying the ball 12 times for 42 yards and his first touchdown as a Panther.
Entering Saturday, Flemister carried the ball 11 times for 45 yards in eight games. On the drive toward the end of the third quarter in which he scored his 1-yard TD, Flemister carried the ball on 10 of Pitt's 11 plays from scrimmage and gained 42 yards.
"Honestly, it felt awesome just to be able to go out there and help affect the game in a positive manner," Flemister said. "We go hard all week, every week at practice. We know Izzy is going to receive the bulk of the carries, but us being selfless players -- whoever's hot or whoever's going at it -- we don't care. We really felt we're like RBU. Whoever's in the game is going to -- there's no drop-off for anybody, whoever's in the game. so just having the opportunity to go in myself and being able to contribute, it's just a blessing. I waited on my time, it came, and I'm just glad I was able to seize the opportunity."
Hammond had his best game since sustaining an injury during his two-TD performance in the Backyard Brawl to open the season.
"My group, our running back room is very, very talented," Hammond said. "We always make sure we're available and ready to make big plays."
• While the defense and rushing offense were spectacular in every facet, the Panthers' passing offense still left much to be desired. The 337 total yards gained came on 72 plays (4.68 yards per play) and Kedon Slovis was not tremendously effective while throwing it, having completed 16 of 23 passes for 176 yards and a fluttered interception on a ball which later was clarified as one which he tried to throw away.
The only two effective receivers for Pitt were Jared Wayne and Konata Mumpfield, the former having six catches on eight targets for 102 yards. It is Wayne's second consecutive 100-plus-yard game after a career-high 161 yards last week against North Carolina.
"The way (Syracuse was) playing, those deep-outs were good for us," Slovis said. "Wasn't as easy over the top, necessarily, just because they were playing over the top, but that doesn't mean you can't get those explosive passes. Jared does a great job, and he's getting better and better and more comfortable with the offense, and I was really proud of him and really all the receivers. (Mumpfield) had a great day, too, getting pretty explosive."
Of Slovis' 16 completions, five went for 20 or more yards. The longest pass play was a 29-yard connection with Mumpfield early in the third quarter.
• Before exiting his press conference, Alexandre took time to plug his Fifth Down campaign, which is working to raise $50,000 toward children in his hometown of Cap-Haitien, Haiti. As of Saturday evening, it has raised $10,200.
"Something that's really passionate to me is giving back to the community and where I'm from, Haiti," he said. "And I just want to put it out there if anyone listening to this, if you've got a chance, visit my Instagram (@deslin__, with two underscores), the link is in my bio, I'm raising $50,000 for kids in Haiti, where I'm from, and I would love to continue to use my platform to give back. So, anybody hearing this, please, just continue to help me reaching my goal, and I thank you guys for that."
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE ESSENTIALS
THE INJURIES
• DID NOT PLAY: RB Israel Abanikanda (dressed), OC Owen Drexel (dressed), WR Gavin Thomson, DE Tyler Bentley.
• OUT FOR THE SEASON: LT Carter Warren, DB Rashad Battle, DE Nate Temple.
THE SCHEDULE
• Pitt will try for two wins in a row on Saturday in Charlottesville, Va., when it meets Virginia for a noon kickoff.
THE CONTENT
• Visit the Pitt team page and my Twitter page for more from Acrisure Stadium. Gary Morgan and I are recording a new H2P Podcast Sunday morning, so check for that on all platforms on Monday.